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Corpus Christi Watershed

Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Introduction To “Views From The Choir Loft”

Jeff Ostrowski · December 30, 2012

LEASE allow me to welcome you to “Views from the Choir Loft.” Credit for the clever Blog name belongs to Andrew Motyka, one of the founding contributors. I hope our Blog title is sufficiently descriptive, because I dislike Blogs with excessively enigmatic titles.

I will not attempt to describe the kinds of blog entries our contributors will be creating since I assume this will be obvious to our readers. For myself, however, I anticipate posting two different types of items: (1) reflections on Catholic sacred music & liturgy; (2) short reflections on interesting things I come across. To illustrate number 2, here is an example:

This was found in a very interesting article by Dom Gregory Anthony Murray (“Catholic Action and the Mass”) published in a 1935 edition of Caecilia (Volume 61, No. 10, page 439).

“In the opinion of all save perhaps the actual singers” . . . How true is this statement by Dom Gregory Murray! So often, singers attempt music they ought not to. But there are ways to remedy this, and I hope to write many more articles explaining how this can be fixed. I also hope to continue providing resources on CCW to help fix this problem.

One more example of an “interesting” thing I would pass along would be this statement by Monsignor Francis P. Schmitt:

It may not seem like forty years to some Pittsburghers since Paul Koch succeeded the redoutable Carlo Rossini, but it is. Prior to that he had studied at the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Tech. Graduate study took him to Leipzig and Paris, 1936-1939, for work with Gunther Ramin and Marcel Dupre. Not the least of his accomplishments in Leipzig was slipping out of class one not-so-fine day to snap a photo of the Nazis demolishing an heroic statue of Felix Mendelssohn. Taken into custody, he was released only after they found the negative.

This was taken from a 1989 article (“Regalement In Pittsburgh”) in Sacred Music. I will be including a lot more by “Frank Schmitt” (as his friends called him) because he was a good writer with “wit” . . . perhaps too much wit.

P.S.

I will sometimes end my blogs with the following motto, repeated often by a great Church musician:

“Remember: the life of a Church musician is a life of sacrifice.”

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “Music List” • 19th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (10 August 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    This Sunday’s Communion Antiphon
    This coming Sunday—10 August 2025—is the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). The COMMUNION ANTIPHON is really gorgeous, and two of its features are worth mentioning. First of all, the Gospel reading assigned is from Saint Luke, whereas the the antiphon—although it matches the account—comes from Saint Matthew. (If anyone can point to a similar example, please notify me.) Furthermore, if you look at the authentic Gregorian Chant version posted on the feasts website, you’ll notice that it’s MODE III but ends on the ‘wrong’ note. A comparable instance of such a ‘transposed’ chant would be KYRIE IV.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Using “Ye” Vs. “You” Correctly
    Using “Ye” vs. “You” is rather tricky, because it depends upon which era one is trying to recreate—if that makes any sense. In other words, the rules haven’t always been the same for these two. Nevertheless, Father Philip George Caraman (the legendary Jesuit scholar) gives us a masterclass using Saint Luke’s Gospel. Father Caraman was close friends with Monsignor Ronald Knox, Evelyn Waugh, and Sir Alec Guinness.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

If the homily goes on too long, it will affect two characteristic elements of the liturgical celebration: its balance and its rhythm. The words of the preacher must be measured, so that the Lord, more than his minister, will be the center of attention.

— Pope Francis (11/24/2013)

Recent Posts

  • Is this what the new “Youth Mass” looks like?
  • “Music List” • 19th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • This Sunday’s Communion Antiphon
  • Using “Ye” Vs. “You” Correctly
  • Installment #3 • “Serious Problems with the Lectionary Translation”

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